Field of the Invention
This invention relates to systems and methods for more efficiently scanning data for viruses.
Background of the Invention
Scanning for viruses is routinely performed on data stores to protect data and prevent system damage or corruption. With some storage systems, an antivirus program is executed on a server or machine that operates external to the storage systems. For example, a dedicated server running antivirus software may be configured to scan for viruses on a network attached storage (NAS) device or other storage device that is separate from the server. Given the large amounts of data that can be stored on modern-day storage systems, such as NAS devices, scanning for viruses can be very time consuming. The amount of time required to complete a scan may vary based on considerations such as bandwidth available between the external antivirus server and the storage system. In certain cases, the external antivirus server may be simultaneously scanning data on several storage systems, further increasing the amount of time needed to complete a scan.
While a scan is in process, the I/O performance of the storage system being scanned may be negatively affected. For example, during the scanning process, the antivirus software may lock files residing on the storage system. Thus, the scanning process may reduce the availability of data while it is being scanned. Any delays experienced during the virus scanning process may further reduce availability. The scanning itself may also be performed inefficiently in some cases. For example, files may be scanned that are not vulnerable to viruses or have a low probability of being vulnerable to viruses. In other cases, antivirus software may scan entire files even though only certain parts of the files may be vulnerable to viruses. This can be particularly time-consuming and inefficient with large files such as medical images or videos.
In view of the foregoing, what are needed are systems and methods to more efficiently scan data for viruses, particularly on storage systems such as modern-day NAS systems. Ideally, such systems and methods will improve data availability and more effectively focus virus scanning resources on those files or parts of files that are vulnerable to viruses or potentially vulnerable to viruses.